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A dental implant as a permanent replacement for a missing tooth can match or even look better than your original tooth. How this happens takes knowledge, skill, experience, and even some art.

Here are some of the factors involved:

Bone quantity and quality: To look and function like an original tooth, an implant must be supported by an adequate base of (jaw) bone and gum tissue. Bone has a tendency to melt away or resorb after a tooth is lost. Using new bone grafting techniques can help minimize the bone loss that occurs during healing at the extraction site. Bone grafting can also be used to rebuild lost bone at the implant site.

Adequate bone supporting neighboring teeth: If you lose bone that supports teeth on either side of an implant, the papillae (the little pink triangles of gum tissue between the teeth) may not regenerate after the implant is placed.

Your inborn tissue type: If your gum tissues are thin and delicate rather than thick and robust, they will be more difficult to work with. To ensure that there is sufficient gum tissue support, (gum) grafting may be necessary.

Using the temporary crown as a template: A dental implant actually replaces a tooth root. Most dental implants are made of commercially pure titanium, which fuses with the bone in your jaw, making it very stable. The crown, the part of the tooth that is visible above the gum line, is attached to the implant; a customized temporary crown can be fitted to the implant. The temporary crown is a trial for the final crown. It can be used to assess color, shape, the appearance of your smile, and the implantâ??s function in your bite and speech. It gives you the opportunity to decide about design adjustments before the final, permanent crown is placed.

The skill, experience, and collaboration of your dental team: Each situation is different. The final success of your implant depends on your pre-surgical assessment and diagnosis, as well as how the surgical and restorative phases of treatment are performed. The use of an outstanding dental laboratory is vital to a successful result.

Modern dental implants, sometimes called “your third set of teeth,” have revolutionized the practice of dentistry. As permanent replacements for missing teeth, dental implants are highly successful.

A dental implant is composed of two parts. The implant actually replaces the tooth root (like the root of your original tooth). It is usually made of commercially pure titanium, which has the capacity to fuse with the bone of your jaw. This fusion is called osseo-integration, meaning “becoming part of the bone.” When this happens, living bone cells actually fuse with the surface layer of the titanium implant, which stabilizes the bone as well. A crown (the part of the tooth that is visible above the gum line) is attached to the implant and can be made of ceramic material that exactly matches the appearance of your natural teeth.

Studies have shown that the success rate of dental implants is greater than 95%. Here's what we need to know to make sure dental implants succeed:

We need to know about your general health. Do you smoke? What medications are you taking? Do you have osteoporosis or a compromised immune (resistance) system?

We will also perform a detailed assessment of the health of your teeth, gums, and jaws to ensure you are a candidate for dental implants.

Do you have sufficient bone to anchor the implants? Is the bone quality adequate? Tooth-supporting bone tends to melt away or resorb when a tooth is lost, so it is important to ensure that it is maintained when a tooth is lost or extracted. We can perform bone grafting to minimize resorption and build up bone tissue if necessary. We will consider the quality and quantity of your bone as part of your assessment.

After the implants have been placed, good dental habits are important. As with your natural teeth, carefully cleaning your new implant crowns and their surrounding gums every day is a necessity.

Continue to visit us on a regular basis. Regular checkups and maintenance can avoid breakdown of the surrounding bone and gum tissues.

If you grind your teeth, we can provide you with a night guard to help to protect your implants from wear and undue stress, which can affect the integration with the bone.

How much do you know about dental implants? Test yourself with this quiz.

Earliest recorded attempts at using dental implants were from

Medieval England

The ancient Mayans

U.S.A. in the 1950s

Dental implants are called endosseous. What does this mean?

They fuse with the bone

They are inside the mouth

They are not real teeth

What are most dental implants made of?

Aluminum

Titanium

Steel

What part of the tooth does an implant replace?

The implant is the root replacement

The implant is the root plus the crown

The implant is the crown

What is the success rate of dental implants?

50 percent or less

75 percent

95 percent or more

What could cause an implant to fail?

Smoking or drug use

Poor bone quality and quantity at the implant site

Both of the above

What is a tooth's emergence profile?

The implant and crown's shape as it emerges from beneath the gum line

A measure of the urgency of the tooth replacement

A measure of the time it takes for you to be able to chew on the new implant

What are some of the factors that go into the aesthetics of designing the crown?

Choice of materials

Color matching

Both of the above

Answers:

b. The concept of dental implants goes back to the Mayan civilization in 600 AD.

a. The word endosseous (from endo meaning within and osseo meaning bone) refers to the implant's ability to fuse with or integrate with the bone in which it is placed.

b. Most implants are made of a titanium alloy, a metallic substance that is not rejected by the body and is able to fuse with the bone.

a. The term “implant” refers to the root replacement, which is anchored in the gum and bone. A crown is put around the implant where it emerges from the gumline.

c. The majority of studies have shown long term success rates of over 95 percent.

c. Factors that could cause an implant to fail include general health concerns such as smoking and drug use, osteoporosis, or a compromised immune system; poor bone quality or quantity; and poor maintenance such as lack of proper brushing and flossing.

a. The emergence profile has a lot to do with the implant's natural appearance. It involves the way the crown, which attaches to the implant, seemingly emerges through the gum tissue like a natural tooth.

c. Choices such as materials, color, and position can be worked out in the design of a customized temporary crown, which acts as a template or blueprint for a final crown.